If there is one thing that I can't stand about dessert these days, it's that everyone focuses on making things gimmicky (800 flavors of mediocre ice cream!) and flashy (a dry cupcake filled with a different flavor than the frosting!) rather than perfecting the basics and delivering a high quality treat. Portland is extremely guilty of this crime. This results in desserts that are impressive at first, but at the core don't even taste very good. After too many experiences where I left describing the treatery as "hit or miss" I have made it my mission to find the perfect recipes for treats.
I've been baking for years and years but mostly focusing on perfecting the technique of baking. Now that my skills have been honed, it's time to focus on finding on the creme de la creme of recipes to produce. This blog is a chronicling of my adventure. It begins with building a repertoire of perfect cupcakes/cake and frosting. I'll start with the basics (chocolate cake, yellow cake, etc) and work my way towards the more complex/fancy.
Treat Beliefs:
-High quality, fresh ingredients make for a better final product
-Understanding the science of baking is critical for success
-Establishing a good quality base of the basics before moving outwards to the fancy/gimicky/flashy
-Don't you dare fill a cupcake with anything other than the frosting on top. This is a one-way ticket towards taste overload. Seriously it's not that big of a tasting space so why complicate it with three competing flavors?
-Find lot's of people to give your treats away to after baked. Your pancreas will thank you.
Buckle up and enjoy the ride!
This reminds me of a certain conversation about the failure of voodoo doughnuts we had. I agree that the flashy has overcome the tasty, but I must admit I succumbed to this a few years ago when I tried to copy Martha Stewart's Penguin Cupcakes creation for Christmas which resulted in dry cake, only okay frosting, and island-of-misfit-toy-esque penguin decorations because I didn't spend 5 hours and 50 dollars perfectly creating chocolate dipped almonds. (I have since sworn of Martha Stewart, at least in the decorating department).
ReplyDeleteBut, alas, there is someone like you baking in the world, who uses simple ingredients and combinations and actually understands the basic techniques of baking--I think the scientist/nurse in you makes for a perfect baker combination. Can't wait to try more!